Retirement Systems of Alabama Reduces Stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lowered its holdings in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 178,320 shares of the company’s stock after selling 852 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned about 0.10% of Constellation Brands worth $43,109,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in STZ. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its position in shares of Constellation Brands by 3,833.3% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Constellation Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STZ has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Constellation Brands from $256.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Constellation Brands from $292.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Bank of America raised their price target on Constellation Brands from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Constellation Brands from $295.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Constellation Brands has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $298.55.

Constellation Brands Stock Performance

Constellation Brands stock opened at $260.04 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.19. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $259.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $248.08. The company has a market capitalization of $47.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.72, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.97. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $221.81 and a fifty-two week high of $274.87.

Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. Constellation Brands had a return on equity of 23.06% and a net margin of 16.13%. Constellation Brands’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.98 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 13.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Constellation Brands Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.01 per share. This is an increase from Constellation Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. Constellation Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO William A. Newlands sold 4,013 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Friday, April 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.25, for a total value of $1,056,422.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 5,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,420,233.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO William A. Newlands sold 4,013 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Friday, April 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.25, for a total value of $1,056,422.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 5,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,420,233.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP James A. Jr. Sabia sold 15,781 shares of Constellation Brands stock in a transaction on Friday, April 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.63, for a total value of $4,160,345.03. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,512,503.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 16.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Constellation Brands Company Profile

Constellation Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, produces, imports, markets, and sells beer, wine, and spirits in the United States, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, and Italy. The company provides beer primarily under the Corona Extra, Corona Premier, Corona Familiar, Corona Light, Corona Refresca, Corona Hard Seltzer, Modelo Especial, Modelo Negra, Modelo Chelada, Victoria, Vicky Chamoy, and Pacifico brands.